She was teasing him about his earlier aloofness towards her… Turns out, she had noticed it all along. Gilbert felt a bit embarrassed, awkwardly shaking his head, “Why would you think that?” “Just enjoy your meal,” Caroline encouraged, passing him a spoon, “Stop overthinking.” She served him a bit of the side dish, “Just like Francis, I’ll always be part of your family.” Gilbert felt a lump in his throat, his eyes stinging with unshed tears, before he finally managed a nod. “Yeah.” “Eat up.” Gilbert swallowed a spoonful of the warm soup, but it tasted bland to him. He once had a real family. And yet, they had abandoned him again! What had he done to deserve this? Born only to be forsaken by his parents, and now, by his lover… Life is an endless cycle of ups and downs, yet he felt utterly alone. Following the address Sherilyn had sent, Galen arrived at the Sunset Ridge Community. He couldn’t help but wonder, his sister lived here? Wasn’t she adopted by the Johnson family? And wasn’t she Mr. Gilbert’s wife? Why would she live in such a modest neighborhood? It wasn’t that Sunset Ridge Community was a bad place to live, but it didn’t seem to match her status. Filled with curiosity, Galen parked his car at the building’s entrance, where Sherilyn was already waiting for him. “Park anywhere here is fine.” Sherilyn greeted him with a smile, “This is an old neighborhood, they’re not strict about parking as long as you’re not blocking the way.” “Alright.” Galen got out of the car, his confusion apparent, “Sis, you live here?” “Yeah.” Sherilyn, understanding his bewilderment, explained with a light smile, “Gilbert and I have been divorced for a while now.” Galen was shocked, “When did that happen?” Weren’t they all over social media with their ‘official announcement’ just a while ago? “It’s a long story.” Sherilyn chuckled, “If you’re interested, I’ll tell you about it sometime. Oh, and… don’t mention it in front of Jenna, she doesn’t know anything.” She paused, then emphasized, “And don’t bring up her dad either, she doesn’t know she has one.” Galen felt a sudden heaviness in his heart. His sister, what kind of life had she been leading these years? “Let’s go inside.” Sherilyn smiled nonchalantly, “Knowing her uncle was coming, Jenna didn’t nap well today.” They entered the apartment building, one after the other. “Here we are.” Sherilyn stopped, took out her keys, and unlocked the door. Galen held his breath, feeling a bit nervous. As the door swung open, the sound of little footsteps and a child’s innocent voice filled the air. “Mommy! Mommy’s back!” “Jenna.” Sherilyn bent down to touch her daughter’s neatly tied hair buns, “Uncle’s here, say hello to uncle.” With that, she stepped aside. Galen stood there, swallowing nervously. Their eyes met, one looking down, the other looking up. “Hi Jenna, I’m your uncle.” Jenna looked up at him, noticing the resemblance to her mother, and stretched out her arms. “Uncle, hug!” “Of course.” Galen was taken aback for a moment but then smiled broadly, bending down to lift Jenna into his arms. “Jenna is even prettier than in the pictures. Uncle brought you a gift, wanna see?” “Yes, please! Thank you, uncle!” Wrapping her arms around Galen’s neck, she planted a kiss on his cheek. “Oh, thank you, Jenna.” Galen’s eyes crinkled with joy, utterly charmed by the delightful child. “Let’s go, gift time!” Galen had bought Jenna a custom-made doll, nearly as tall as she was, complete with a suitcase filled with doll clothes, shoes, bags, and jewelry. “Mommy! It’s as big as Jenna!” Jenna was thrilled, “So pretty!”
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